If I fall, will you catch me?
by Demarcating Psychiatrist
Summary: Hello! First fic! This was just a plot bunny of mine! You can probably guess what is going to happen from the title. Rated T for safety. Zach has come up with a new insidious plan to get rid of the Wild Kratt team. How far will Zach go and what does this mean for the brothers?
1. chapter 1

This is my first fanfic! I will try my best for it to be decent! Thank you! And I hope no one is too OOC!

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It was supposed to be a normal day as any other for the Kratt brothers but things change on a whim.

The Wild Kratt team arrived in the rainforest once again. This time to learn about an intriguing creature, the ocelot! They were like miniture Leopards but they were mighty creatures for their size!

As Jimmy was landing the tortuga everyone else was getting ready. Aviva and Koki were preparing their computers to recieve the information Martin and Chris gathered. Meanwhile the brothers were goofing off and were excited to go and find out what fantastic abilities the ocelot had!

"You got the climbing gear Martin?" Chris asked in excitement.

Martin laughed, " I sure do!"

"This is going to be so awesome!" Chris responded.

As the brothers finished packing the rest of their supplies Aviva walked in.

"As always, send me videos so I make sure I get all the code right for the creature power suits!" She said while smiling.

"Don't worry Aviva! We will!" Martin stated enthusiastically. The brothers finished packing and prepping and went on their way. Little did they all know what was about to occur later on.

*MEANWHILE ELSEWHERE*

Zach was sitting in his jet, finishing up the last details of his plan. It was the most sinister one he had ever thought of. It was quite simple.

First he wanted to catch the brothers off guard. Then he would put his plan into action! He would send his Zachbots after the defenseless brothers and deliberately make the brothers split up.

The Zachbots would eventually catch them. He would then send a live video chat to the tortuga and taunt them on how they couldn't do anything. He would then command the Zachbots to fly above the canopies of the trees. This is where it would truly get a little hectic. Zach would then command the Zachbots to drop one of the brothers while the other one watched helplessly.

He would then command the Zachbots to lower the remaining brother over the body of the fallen one. Zach was fully aware how close they were. So if one of them is seriously injured, or potentially be dead, he knew the other would fall into depression. Making them unmotivated to stop him and the other villains.

And Zach had already picked out who was doomed to fall.


	2. Oblivious

Martin and Chris were walking for a while now, trying to find their amazing creature friend. They've been walking for so long that Martin already came up with names for all the ones they would encounter!

"I think Spots would be a good name for one of them!" Martin stated matter-of-factly.

Chris playfully rolled his eyes. "That is such an overused name bro!"

Martin scoffed. "As if! I think it fits perfectly!"

Chris laughed and responded. "Sure, whatever floats your boat."

Just then there was rustling in the bushes. The brothers quickly stopped talking hoping it would be what they were looking for. They quickly started to slowly approach the bush. Martin was smiling like a madman for he could finally use one of the names he thought up of. And Chris was taking out his creature pod to see if he could capture a video for Aviva. Just as Chris was pulling back the leaves something jumped out torwards him!

Chris got startled and jumped back, knocking himself into Martin. Both of the brothers fell down and the creature slowly approached Martin's face.

"No way!" Martin exclaimed.

Chris got up and looked torwards Martin's direction.

"Whoa," Chris began. "Is that a Mabuya bistriata skink?!" His face matching Martin's excitement.

"It sure is!" Martin replied smiling.

The two focused on this little lizard for about a good 5 minutes or so. And of course Martin had named the little guy.

"So long Penny!" Matin said while releasing the skink.

"Penny?" Chris asked confused.

"Yeah, because of the color of her skin!" Martin beamed.

The two began talking once again failing to notice a certain enemy's henchmen trailing behind.


	3. The Chase

**Disclaimer: I do not own Wild Kratts just this story.**

 **And sorry for taking a long time to update! I have work and I get a hecka tired by the end ;w; And I have a kitty who constantly wants attention. She can be a little devil if she doesn't get what she wants. But hey, I'm not complaining. X3. To make it up to you all I made the chapter a little long! Now back to the story! (ｰwｰ)**

 **-Psych**

 **0000000000000000000000000000** **0000**

Walk. Walk. Walk.

After the brothers encountered their scaly friend they just went back to walking. It was the afternoon now and they could now see a storm starting to form.

"Hey Martin, should we head back to the tortuga and try again tomorrow? It's getting a little late and a storm is coming." Chris asked uncertainly gazing at the cloud formations overhead.

Martin looked at him and paused in thought to make a decision.

"I say we walk for 15 more minutes and then head back! You never know if an ocelot is here hiding!" Martin replied with a grin.

"Alright, 15 more minutes then." Chris agreed.

7 minutes in and still nothing. The storm was rapidly approaching now and they could now feel the storm's powerful thunder claps. As the rumbling subsided from a thunder clap there was some rustling in some nearby bushes. As before, the brothers stopped what they were doing and started to approach the source of the noise.

Chris proceeded to pull back the branches of the bushes. What he saw infuriated him. About 6 poachers (Which he has never seen before until this very moment) where caging up some of the rainforests' creatures. However their movements seemed a little... robabotic? Chris failed to notice that for he was already calling Martin's attention.

"Martin! Take a look at this!" Chris said whisper-shouting.

Martin snuck up next to Chris and soon his face mirrored his brothers.

"You know what we have to do." Martin said, side glancing at Chris. Chris nodded in agreement.

As they both were about to confront the poachers, all of the poachers' heads snapped torward their direction. Both brothers froze. The poachers stopped what they were doing and began sprinting torwards the brothers. Martin and Chris were caught off gaurd by this strange event. And before they knew it the poachers morphed into a certain enemy's familiar henchmen. Zachbots.

"RUN!" Chris shouted and both began to flee. The Zachbots of course, pursued them.

They both have been running for about 3 minutes and they still couldn't shake the Zachbots off their trail.

"I think we should split up and try and lose them from there!" Martin yelled a little out of breath. Chris turned his head facing his elder brother.

"Alright, I will take to the trees and you can try and lose them on the ground! If not, try and lose them on the trees as well!" Chris yelled back. Martin nodded and both went their different paths.

 ***With Martin***

Martin kept running and out of the corner of his eye he saw Chris seizing an oppurtunity to scramble up a tree. Martin hoped his brother would be okay, but right now he needed to devise a plan to escape his pursuers. Then an idea hit him. He should run through some bushes and try to lose the Zachbots from there. Sure he might get a little lost but at this point in time he was already lost enough according to him.

Martin then saw his chance. Some thick bushes were coming up. As he reached that spot he quickly dove in and began running through. After several minutes (which felt like forever and a half to Martin) he stopped running to catch is breath.

Martin tried to calm his breathing so he could listen to his surroundings. He heard no bushes rustling and no beeping emitting from anywhere. Martin sighed from relief and right when he was about to leave his current spot to search for his younger brother, two pairs of cold claw like hands gripped his arms. Martin already knew who it was and there was no escape. The Zachbots beeped and started to hover up to the tree canopies, unsure of where he was going. He only hoped Chris was okay.

 ***With Chris***

As soon as Chris finished instructing Martin what to do, he saw an escape route to the tree tops. Giving one last look at Martin he climbed the tree as fast as he could. This was now Chris's domain for he was very agile in the trees. He began running through the branches. Hopping from tree to tree trying his best to avoid stray branches.

He could only hope the stray branches would slow down the Zachbots so he could lose them easier.

Run.

Keep your balance.

Be aware of stray branches.

Repeat.

After a few minutes of running Chris quickly glanced behind him and was suprised, but relieved, that he had lost his pursuers. Chris began to slow down, being wary of his surroundings. He was pratically panting at this point. Chris put his hands behind his head amd took deep breaths.

 _I'm fine..._ Chris thought to himself. _And Martin is fine too..._

Before Chris could finish his thought he was roughly grabbed by the arms and legs. Cold metallic claws gripping at his flesh. Chris struggled for a bit then eventually gave up. There was no escaping these guys. The Zachbots began beeping as if to confirm something and then started to fly up. He hoped Martin was alright and out ran the Zachbots, but that thought was diminished by the time he came out of the canopies for he saw a familiar blonde's hair.


	4. The fall

**Double update! On the same day! Yay!**

 **The last chapter was getting a little too long for me so I split it up -w-b I put drawing, animating, and playing my new video games on hold just for you all X3 (plus my kitty is sleeping.)**

 **Again I do not own Wild Kratts just the story plot.**

 **Time to continue.**

 **-Psych**

 **00000000000000000000000000000000**

 ***With Zach***

Zach was in his jet sitting in his chair waiting for the conformation calls from the Zachbots that they got the brothers. A short while later the room filled with the beeps Zach has been waiting for.

Zach flipped a switch to one of his many cameras and sure enough, the brothers were in his henchmens' grasps. They seemed to be shouting to one another trying to comfort each other. He also saw a storm coming. It was right overhead of them. What a perfect clichè.

 _How adoring._ Zach thought bitterly watching them struggle. Then he grinned wickedly. It was time to make a call to a turtle shaped ship. Thinking of what to say for a few moments, he then pressed call.

 ***At the Tortuaga***

Aviva and Koki were waiting around bored wondering if the brothers were ever going to contact them of their findings. Jimmy on the other hand was taking a nap and was snoring.

"Are they ever going to call us?" Koki turned to Aviva with a exasperated face.

"Hopefully it'll be soon Koki. How abo-"

Aviva was cut off by a call coming in.

" **Finally!** " both girls exclaimed in unison.

Jimmy had woken up from the ring of the call and lugged his way to the computer screen.

"Have they finally found something?" He asked them with a yawn.

"We're about to find out!" Aviva replied. Excitement evident in her voice.

Aviva then accepted the call, only to be greeted by a shrill annoying voice. She didn't dare look at the screen for she knew exactly who it was. Jimmy and Koki were glaring at the screen.

"Hello Wild Ratts crew!" Zach greeted in his signiture narcissistic voice.

"Zach." Aviva snarled. "What do you want?"

Zach gave her a smug look. "I just want to show you something."

He then proceeded to flip a switch offscreen. Another video screen appeared beside Zach. Aviva, Koki, and Jimmy stared in complete horror. They saw the brothers, their friends, hanging above the canopies, wind violently rushing through the leaves. They looked as if they were shouting at each other trying to find a way out. They were struggling against the Zachbots, fear clearly seen in both their eyes.

"Zach! What exactly are you playing at here!?" Aviva narrowed her eyes at him. Refusing to believe what was displayed in front of her.

"What are you talking about?" Zach gave an innocent look. He then laughed maniacally.

"Let's cut to it shall we?" Zach glared back at them while they stared anxiously. He continued.

"While you all are sitting there useless..." He paused "I'm going to exterminate one of these Wild Ratts!"

"You wouldn't dare!" Aviva shot back a look of horror and disgust filled her face. Zach wouldn't go that far...would he? Aviva heard Koki and Jimmy gasp from behind her.

Zach sneered. "Just you watch! Zachbots! You know which one to let go!"

The world stood still for the trio as they watched one of their friends plummet to his certain demise.

 ***With the brothers during the call***

Chris had immediatly recognized Martin being pulled out of the tree tops and his heart instantly sank. They were both caught... The wind around them seemed to be picking up.

Martin noticed Chris a few short seconds later.

"CHRIS!" He shouted. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Martin!" Chris said reassuringly. "How about you!?"

"Well, besides hanging over hundreds of feet in the air by three soup cans, I'm pretty good!" Martin gave out a nervous laugh trying to make light of the situation.

"Alright! Let's see how we'll get out of this one!" Chris began looking around. No where else to go except straight down. Chris started to slightly inwardly panic, remembering the incident with the Draco Lizards. _Calm down..._ he told himself _be brave for Martin..._

Martin on the other hand was looking around too. They were both defenseless...but they packed gear right? Some sort of defense just in case? Then a memory slapped Martin like a ton of bricks. He remembered that they must've put it down and forgotten about it when they saw the skink... No wonder walking felt lighter and running away seemed a little faster. Thunder boomed from above.

Martin swore under his breath. Of course they would do something like that. And here they were dangling above the ground, It felt like a string was about to snap but Martin just couldn't place it. He got a sinking feeling something really catastrophic was about to occur. But what...Oh...Oh no... Now Martin to was starting to panic. Why else would they be hanging in the air? Zach has tried to upright kill them in the past before but this, this was downright insanity. He wasn't that cruel...was he..? In the past they could escape these situations with the creatures they had met but now it was just them. As Martin finished that thought, he looked at Chris and saw him starting to panic.

"Bro! Don't worry we'll be fi-"

Just then the Zachbots holding Chris beeped and their grip on him was becoming looser. It was also starting to rain.

 _NO! NO! NO! NO!_ Martin stared in terror as Chris was starting to slip and the rain was not helping anyone. Chris was desperately trying to get a hold of the Zachbots, any part, so he wouldn't slip but the Zachbots prevented him from doing so. Lightning flashed as Chris eventually lost his grip and started plummeting.

Down.

Down.

Down.

 ** _"CHRIS!!"_**

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 **Sorry to break the mood but I hope you all enjoyed that! First time writing a suspensful moment so hopefully it turned out okay. Let the angst train roll in next chapter. See you all then!**

 **-Psych**


	5. After the fall

**I'm back kiddos! I have been working a lot lately but hey! More money for me! And a lot of personal issues (concerning "friends") have also come up for me but don't worry, all is good! Now let's get the angst train rolling shall we? Chugga chugga choo choo!**

 **(P.s. please excuse spelling mistakes! I write these late at night when I'm bone tired. Thanks! I'll probably go back and fix all mistakes in the future. Maybe.)**

 **-Psych**

 **00000000000000000000000000000000**

The world seemed to stop spinning in Martin's eyes. As Chris was falling, Martin could have sworn he saw him reach out. Oh, how badly Martin wanted to grasp his brothers' hand. But alas, he could not. All he could do was helplessly watch.

The wind was making his hair blow into his eyes, somewhat obscuring his vision. The rain started falling even harder than before. Everything now became a daze to him. Martin hadn't even noticed he was being lowered down. Leaves and branches were scratching at his face.

He was snapped out of his daze when he saw an all familiar green hoodie with a mop of brown hair. But something was off about those colors... There was a dark red mixed in. Martin's heart felt like it could explode.

 ** _THUMP._**

 ** _THUMP._**

 ** _THUMP._**

Just then Martin was roughly dropped on the jungle floor. He had completely forgotten that he was held by a Zachbot. He quickly glanced up to see the Zachbot disappear in the leaves.

Martin snapped his head to where he saw Chris. He wasted no time and quickly scrambled to reach his brother. Martin felt like he was moving through molasses for he wasn't reaching his brother fast enough.

Finally, he arrived but was nauseous at the sight. There lie Chris, bloody, bruised, and contorted in such an awkward position. Martin quickly grabbed his wrist to try and find a pulse. 30 seconds went by and Martin was about to give up when he suddenly felt a small beat.

There was a small faint heartbeat. It felt like it would give out at any second. Martin gave out a small sigh of relief as well as a nervous laugh. He was still alive! Chris survived but just barely.

A raindrop got caught in Martin's eye and started running down his face. He quickly wiped it away only for more drops of water to take its place. Martin suddenly became aware that they were no raindrops, they were his tears. Slowly the tears started appearing more and more. Before he knew it, he was sobbing.

 _No..._ He thought to himself a few minutes later. _Be strong...for Chris..._

Martin checked his pockets for his creature pod and miraculously it was still there. There was no signal for a while. Martin was about to throw the pod in frustration when suddenly a little bar appeared declaring a signal. The blonde gave out a sigh of relief.

He had to call the Tortuga for help. It didn't matter if they saw him in such a broken state, they would understand...Right? Martin scolded himself. Of course they would understand! They knew how close the brothers were after all and they would be more understanding given the situation.

Martin wiped any remaining tears away and took a deep breath. His thumb hovering over the call option. And before he knew it, he had pressed call.

Not even a second passed by and three panicked voices answered.

"Martin!" Aviva was the first to exclaim in sheer terror.

"We saw what happened! Is Chris...is he...?" She trailed off not daring to finish the question.

Tears threatened to spill when she asked. Aviva must have realized what he was going to say and immediatley she, along with the rest of the crew went quiet.

"Martin... We're... we're so sorr-" Koki began sorrowly but Martin cut her off before she could finish.

"N-no!" His voice cracked.

"He's... He's not dead...at least not yet... Chris... he's still alive but just barely... There's hardly a heartbeat... I-I'll send you the coordinates of where we are but please! Please hurry!" Martin pleaded the tears now more visible.

Aviva nodded wordlessly in understanding. Martin ended the call and quickly sent the team the coordinates. He quickly kneeled besides Chris to see if the pulse was still there. It was but it seemed fainter. Gasping in panic, Martin looked around to see if there was any sign of a flying turtle ship. A familiar whirr filled the air and the Tortuga was in sight. As luck would have it the Tortuga landed a block away.

 _That's probably the closet clearing..._ He thought bitterly, wanting it to be closer.

The ship began descending and a few minutes after Aviva, Koki, and Jimmy came out of the bushes and were sprinting torwards Martin. The trio looked horrified when they saw the condition Chris was in.

Aviva snapped out of her gaze to address everyone.

"We need to get him to a more stable enviroment and fast! There we can fix his wounds and do anything else to help get his pulse more stable!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Martin spoke up. "I'll carry Chris... You guys just lead the way."

He carefully picked up Chris. It felt like he was picking up the most fragile thing in the world. Trying really careful to preserve said fragile object so it doesn't break. He was shaking.

"Alright." he paused. "Let's go."

And off they went.


	6. Running

**I'm so sorry I've been getting a lot of hours at work! And I'm gonna be honest with you kids, I wanted to end this story at chapter 4 with a few extensions but knowing me...I would want more too.** **And I'm kinda losing motivation...BUT FEAR NOT! I WILL MAKE MYSELF FINISH THIS STORY AND I'VE BEEN WATCHING MORE OF THE SHOW TO GET BACK INTO IT!!**

 **I actually think it might end soon...? maybe 2-4 more chapters? I live for slow burns too yo.** **I'm also going to make a small infirmary in the Tortuga. Surely accidents are bound to happen right?**

 **And I have a side blog on tumblr dedicated to this fandom! I draw art there and stuff! And I take requests! You can also ask me anything about the story too!**

 **Here it is: https/psychosomatic-ecstacy.**

 **-Psych**

 **00000000000000000000000000000000**

Run forward. That was his only goal in mind. Keep going. Don't mind the stray leaves and branches. Careful not to slip on the muddy terrain. Follow the crew. And whatever you do, do not stop.

The sound of snapping twigs and the rustling of leaves filled the air of this seemingly now silent forest. It was as if they were the only ones residing in the forest.

Koki had informed him that the Tortuga is straight ahead and if they kept going at the same pace they would they be able to reach it in about two minutes.

Two minutes. That seemed like an eternity to Martin. He quickly glanced down at his younger brother instantly regretting it. Chris was getting paler and paler by the second. _Hold on Chris... We'll get you the care you need soon..._ he thought to himself. And that gave Martin new found adrenaline to keep on going.

More running and a few mis-slips later the aqua green top of the Tortuga became visible. An audible sigh escaped Martin's lips. One minor obstacle down, now to get over the bigger one.

Within thirty-seconds they were there. Jimmy scurried to get there first so he could open the door (or hatch?) of their turtle ship. With a whoosh it opened. Aviva and Koki quickly rushed past Martin as well (not that he minded all of them running ahead of him or anything) so that they could quickly prepare the infimary.

Martin got there a few moments later, skidding into the Tortuga, being careful not to slip from the mud and water. He headed torwards the small room they made as an infirmary. They hardly used that miniscule room except for the occasional cuts and bruises they got from creature adventuring but nothing that serious... As opposed to now.

Despite being hardly used, the little white room had lots of medical treatment in it. From X-ray machines to needles and thread for stitches to IV drips and more. It was like a compacted hospital. Everything needed to save a life...if they could save a life that is.

Martin gently laid Chris down on the white and blue bed. Within seconds, its pristine linens were covered in dirt, small chips of tree bark, and of course, blood. Koki and Aviva wasted no time and quickly got to work on Chris's injuries. Martin decided to leave the room not wanting to get in the way of them.

He walked back to the main room of the Tortuga and saw Jimmy sitting in one of the chairs fidgeting a bit. When he saw Martin walk in he snapped his head torwards his direction, offering a small sad smile. Martin reluctantly returned it and headed torwards his red headed friend and sat down, on the brink of a break down.

 _Stay strong for everyone..._ he thought to himself.

A voice broke his thoughts.

"Chris is tough MK, he'll pull through! And you guys will go back to your adventures in no time!" Jimmy said. He was trying to add some hope to this grim situation.

Martin let out a shaky breath.

"I d-don't. know Jimmy... What if..What if he never wakes up! Or he has a debilitating injury that would stop him from creature adventuring! This would be all my fault! I told him that we should split up! If I hadn't said that...he would be fine..!" The tears were starting to come back and he was trying so hard to fight them.

Jimmy noticed and tried to think of something comforting.

"Hey MK, why don't you go lie down for a bit? You've been through a lot today as well and you don't want to add to the stress. I'll wake you up as soon as I get word on Chris's conditions." Jimmy offered.

Martin stared at him bewildered.

"Jimmy! I can't do that! What if the girls need me for something! Or- Or what of Chris wakes up and he needs me! What if animals start going missing! Or-!" Before he could finish Jimmy placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Martin." Jimmy looked at him with seriousness. "Don't worry about that now, just go to your room and rest up a bit."

Giving up and deciding on what Jimmy said He headed torwards his room. When he got there the first thing he saw was an empty green hammock. Both brothers shared a room since the Tortuga was a little small for everyone to have their own room.

Tears began falling once more. Martin went on the green hammock and buried his face into the pillow. Sobbing at the fact that it was his fault he couldn't save his brother. That it was HIS idea to split up. He was the older brother! He should be protecting Chris!

The thoughts kept running through Martin's head and he kept weeping at the idea of them. Eventually as the adrenaline wore of a wave of exhaustion hit him hard. The soft, relaxing, pitter patter of rain was not helping him fight sleep and soon his eyelids started feeling heavy, without knowing it, He fell asleep.


	7. Breathe in

**I apologize for the lack of updates!! I kinda just stopped because I didn't know how to go on... Also school got me like "diddley darn homework" But work is going well. I also have been investing my soul into other fandoms...whoops..**

 **I also feel like I'm not giving Jimmy a huge enough role so please tell me if it feels that he's contributing or not.**

 **And lemme just say that Aviva and Koki are prepared for death situations hence all the hospital machinery. I suppose it's because they are prepared to save an animal life at any time. But what about a fellow team mate...?**

 **Huehue, now onto the stor** **y!**

 **-Psych**

 **00000000000000000000000000000000**

Days had passed slowly turning into weeks. Martin still felt the heavy guilt despite what his team mates told him.

Some of the guilt was coming from what lack of control Martin has on this situation. Of course he can't do anything about it because who can?! Knowing that it hit him like a ton of bricks. He should be in control of the situation! Or at least he thinks because it's his responsibilty as the older brother.

And of course the villains! Zach had predicted correctly because Martin was too tired and stressed to do anything. The noirette must have told the chef and fashonista what he did and before Martin knew it, animals were going missing left and right! To make matters worse is that everyone decided to go to the rainforest as if it were to taunt him! Martin would try his best to get his animal friends back but something would distact him reminding him of Chris and by the time Martin snapped out of it, it was too late!

Snapping out of his thoughts, Martin got up from his blue hammock and gave a sad glance towards the empty piece of green fabric. Slowly making his way towards the door making his way toward the infirmary. He gave a small sigh.

Perhaps the most damaging thing to Martin was what had happened to Chris in the days that have passed. His mind slowly wandered back to the day Jimmy, Aviva, and Koki told him what injuries Chris had and what followed.

 *** _Flashback*_**

Martin woke up to the sound of rain lighlty pattering the window. It was completely dark now and the lighting partnered by thundering roars was gone. This would have been a relaxing sight if Martin didn't remeber what had just occured a few hours ago.

 _Wait a minute..._ He suddenly thought. How long has it been? What time was it? He didn't remember falling asleep! How dare he fall asleep in a situation like this! And Jimmy! Wasn't he supposed to get him as soon as he got word of Chris's injuries?!

Martin stumbled out of the green hammock and bolted towards the door. He was a little upset over the fact that Jimmy nor Aviva or Koki didn't get him immediately!

The Tortuga was a tad bit dark. Martin slowed down and carefully made his way to HQ. There he saw Aviva, Jimmy, and Koki on chairs, heads resting on the platform in the center of the room.

Unfortunately Martin failed to notice a screwdriver on the floor and slipped over it causing him to tumble and fall on all the other miscellaneous things on the floor.

The crashing noises woke up the trio from their slumber.

"H-huh?? Wha-?!" Jimmy looked around and his eyes landed on Martin, a sheepish grin crossed his face.

Cursing under his breath from the slip up, Martin got up and looked at the three accusingly.

"Why didn't you guys wake me up as soon as you found about Chris's injuries!?"

They all flinched then Aviva started giving a sorrow look "Well Martin, after what has happened we thought you needed the rest."

Koki cut in "And we were going to tell you first thing in the morning we swear!" She offered him a small smile of pity. Jimmy and Aviva quickly nodded.

Martin huffed and glanced at the clock. In the darkness and the soft glow of the technology in their turtle ship it looked to have read 3:56.

"Well," He began crossing his arms "Now that we're all awake you can go ahead and tell me."

The three glanced at each other and thought better to tell the blonde to go back to sleep.

"Okay Martin." Aviva sighed then spoke up again "Chris has a broken femur on his right leg, he has 4 broken ribs one of which punctured a lung causing it to collapse, lacerations of all shapes in sizes litter his body and we had to give him over 200 stitches, we detected a severe concussion, both of his wrists are sprained and his left arm is fractured, and on top of all this he fell into a deep coma and we don't know when or if he will wake up..."

Aviva was nearly sobbing by the time she finished and she put her hand over her face to avoid being seen. Koki stepped up beside her gingerly placing a hand on her shoulder and spoke to Martin in a low voice.

"We hooked him up on the life supporting machines and he'll need another blood transfusion soon, fortunately, both of you have the same blood type and Jimmy has an O blood type. Hence why I said another blood transfer soon.."

Tears gleamed in Koki's eyes as well. Jimmy bowed his head. Martin swore that the clock stopped ticking once he recieved the news.

 _No..This can't be true.._ Martin sunk to his knees putting his hands to his mouth a small sob escaping. The others looked up and immediately went over to Martin shrouding him in hugs.

"We will all get through this together Martin." Someone had said but Martin couldn't make out who.

Martin would agree with all of them saying he needed the sleep because he couldn't sleep for the longest time.


	8. Rough times

**Second to last chapter kiddos! A majority of this chapter will be a flashback and then lead up to the present which is Martini walking, but, to where?** **You'll find out! Yay!** **Also updated chapter 7 a bit because of some continuity errors but I got it all worked out now!**

 **And for the record I've never gotten my blood drawn or transfused so hopefully it's accurate!**

- **Psych**

 **00000000000000000000000000000000**

 **flashback continued***

After confiding with each other and bidding a good night(?) Martin made his way back to his room promising himself that he would see his younger brother as soon as there was a sign of light piercing through the thick tree tops.

The team was right. If he wanted to help his brother he would need to help himself. With a sigh, Martin re-entered the room. Looking at the window it was still raining but it was more of a dribble. Water was lightly hitting against the glass surface but not as frequent. Its low melodic taps against the window could put an insomniac to sleep.

Slowly making his way over to his own hammock and lying down, he closed his eyes. Unfortunately in Martin's case anxiety was keeping him up. It seemed like never ending hours of tossing and turning and staring at a blank ceiling the outside started to finally lighten up.

Granted it only changed one or two shades lighter but that was enough for Martin to scramble out of his hammock and rush towards the infirmary. Before peering in the doorway Martin mentally prepared himself. Taking a few deep breathes and a self pep talk he turned the corner.

Okay, he was not prepared. Machinery crowded the once open room and in the middle of it all was his brother. Broken and bruised. Tears started to spring in Martin's eyes. He quickly wiped them away. What was he supposed to expect? His brother sitting on the bed reading about something nature related and looking up and smiling at him? A voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Oh! I was just about to get you." It was Aviva's. Martin quickly snapped his head towards her direction.

"Sorry, I didn't meam to scare you." She glanced down.

"It's okay, you didn't scare me." He offered her a small smile.

Aviva glanced at her watch and looked up at the blond once more. "It's about time we gave him another transfusion." She said in a low sad voice.

Martin gave a small nod. Aviva walked over to some cabinets and pulled out a peculiar device. It was a slender needle with a clear tube leading up to the bag. She then turned back to Martin and started shuffling over to where he was grabbing an IV stand with her.

Placing the IV stand next to him Aviva asked for him to curl his hand into a fist. Martin complied and Aviva placed a piece rubbery elastic around his bicep.

"Now you'll just feel a tiny pinch but nothing too bad."

Martin already knew what to expect having done this when he was in highschool for extra credit he just didn't want to interrupt Aviva. Why? He had no clue he just didn't want too. Maybe out of respect?

It was a sudden sharp pain but just as it came it went and soon blood started flowing into the tube and traveling up into the bag. It felt as if seconds passed and before Martin knew it, it was finished. Aviva was monitering the blood flow and when the bag got full enough she quickly closed off the needle and gently plucked it out of Martin's forearm.

She moved the stand next to the hospital bed and got a new needle to prick Chris with.

Aviva sighed "He won't need more blood until later today." She made her way around the bed to check the different machines and when she was done she made her way towards the door.

"Aviva!" Martin suddenly said. She turned to face him and he looked up with tears in his eyes yet again. "Thank you, thank you guys for everything."

She looked down then up again with a faint smile and glassy eyes. "We are a family Martin. We have to look after each other through the thick and thin."

Martin slowly stood up and walked towards her giving her a slight hug. It startled Aviva at first but she returned the embrace. "Thank you again." He whispered before sitting back down facing his brother.

Aviva shook her head as a few tears fell and with a mini laugh (which sounded more like a snort) she walked out presumably to check on the worlds' animals.

This routine continued for days. Jimmy and Martin would swap places giving blood whenever needed and soon Chris had enough blood to stop the transfusions.

They didn't dare try to take off and take Chris to an actual hospital because the crew had feared some unexpected turbulance would damage him even more and perhaps that it could be fatal.

Between trying to rest and trying to stop all the poachers in the area from using animals for their own personal use, Martin spent all the time he had remaining in the day with his younger brother.

Tragically one day... There was complete and total chaos. Chris out of nowhere had cardiac arrest and Martin had a mental breakdown when Koki and Aviva had a bit of a hard time resuscitating him. All the stress and worry just builded up and Martin couldn't bottle it up no longer. Jimmy tried his best to keep Martin calm and eventually the girls came back and told him that everything was going to be fine. It felt like the longest day in his life.

After that Martin spent most of, if not all of the time, he had with his brother hoping it would never happen again. He would occasionally go out of the infirmary to get something to eat or drink and sometimes goes to the room they share. That was his life schedule.

 ***End flashback***

Martin shuddered. Today was the same as any other. Light walking filled the hallway as he made his way to a very well known destination. Walking into the room he sat on the chair pulling it up to Chris's bed.

"H-hey bro!" He tried to sound cheery. "It's been pretty crazy without you here adventuring and all!" His eyes started to sting.

"We're still here in the rainforest. We never left because we didn't want to injure you more."

Silence.

Martin's voice cracked before he continued. "When are you going to wake up?" He started shaking, laying his head on the bed. "Please! Please wake up Chris!"

The silence was deafening.

"I don't know how me or the team will carry on without you!" He cried now sobbing into the bed. 10 minutes had passed before Martin went up to get a tissue. Something lightly touched his arm. Turning his head he felt his heart drop then leap out of his throat.

Out of the silence a groggy faint voice could be heard.

"Hey bro, why are you crying?"


End file.
